Snmmer Treatment. -Tbe young: plants are carefully 

 hardened in the .spring, to e-bje them to^be^J^lar^ted 



CARNATION 249 



under control by syringing judiciously with water, and 

 the greentiy by fumigation with rose-leaf extract ( 

 of tobacco stems on the lioor i 



plants, which are 



yield flowers in the fall ; 



a sandy loam 



the best 



3f the house. Three 



May. Various sous tave given -;;-^7»;'--;;i':;e7ec7ntiy become annoying ; viz.. 



ly soil yields fine plants If a drought J"' f , y,,.„„, ,,,.„ caryophyllimcs, Schr. , anthracnose 



- clay soil will make s^or ^tifl -J^ J^f/^"™-^" ^^^ ■',/„/„ blight ( Seploria IHantM, 



r,l„nt,s. which are Slow TO 1^^^^ The best treatment is to destroy diseased plants 



and to spray the rest with Bordeaux mixture. _ 



Varieties are constantly changing. The following 

 represent the common range of variation : 



White-Lizzie McGowan (Fig. 372), Ivory, Alaska, 

 Uncle John, Flora Hill, White Cloud. , ,^ .. . 



Pink -will. Scott Daybreak (Fig. 374), Albertini, 

 Bridesmaid, Delia Fox, Triumph, Victor. 



Scarlet-Hector, Portia, Dazzle, Jubilee (Fig. Hi). 

 Variegated - Minnie Cook, Helen Keller, Mrs. Geo. 

 M. Bradt, Armazindy. 



Yellow- Eldorado, Buttercup, Mayor Pingree, Uoia 

 Nugget. 



The field soil is well pre- 

 pared by applying a liberal 

 quantity of well- 



^ rotted manure or 



-^a-- ~^ an equivalent in 

 commercial ferti- 

 lizer, plowing 

 deeply and har- 

 rowing thorough- 

 i-y*.^ ly. The plants are 



I ^- then set, as soon 



as danger from heavy frosts is 

 past, putting them 10 inches 

 apart, in rows 12 inches apart 

 if to be worked entirely by 

 hand, and 3 feet apart if to be 

 worked with horse and culti- 

 vator. Throughout the summer 

 the plants are kept free from 

 weeds and frequently culti- 

 vated. No blossoming by plants 

 intended for winter flowering 

 is permitted. All rising shoots 

 are cut back to 2-4 inches as 

 fast as they appear. Such prun- 

 ing ceases about August 1 to 10. 

 la the month of September the 

 plants are lifted and planted 

 upon the benches. Some grow- 

 ers transplant with "balls" of 

 ground, others without any soil 

 clinging to the roots. 



Winter 'rreatment.-The Car- 

 nation house usually stands east 

 and west, and is provided with 

 both raised and solid benches. 

 Much experience and a long 

 controversy have resulted in 

 the conclusion that some varie- 

 ties of Carnations should be 

 planted on raised benches and 

 others on solid benches. The 

 soil is prepared some time pre- 

 , vious to Its use, with three- 

 ■ fourths loam and one-fourth 

 well-rotted manure, turning 

 several times to thoroughly mix the elements. About 

 September 1 it is placed on the benches, enough to be 

 4 or 5 inches deep when settled. The plants are set 8 

 to 12 inches apart each way, watered thoroughly, ana 

 syringed frequently until established. Staking is nec- 

 essary to keep the branches off the ground and the flow- 

 ers above the foliage. Various arrange- 

 ments of wires and strings are devised. 

 The use of plant-stakes has been universally 

 abandoned. 



The temperature of the Carnation house 

 is maintained at 50 to 55° F. at night and 

 about 10° warmer in the daytime, during 

 the whole winter. The proper use of water 

 maintains a healthy growth, ensures sub- 

 stantial flowers, and prevents red spider. 

 On bright days the houses are freely 

 syringed. Fertilizers are used with great 

 liberality on the plants in the benches, and 

 with good results. Liquid manures trom 

 horse, cow, sheep or hen droppings, diluted 369. Cama- 

 to the color of weak tea, are applied about tion cuttine, 

 once a week, beginning about January 1, 

 or a mulch of well-rotted cow manure is put 

 ground after the plants become well 

 practiced to produce large flowers o 

 Carnations are not very seriously 



Carnati( 



Crimson-Meteor, Tidal Wave, Cartledge. 



Carnations in Pots. -Pot pot culture, the Carnation 

 is propagated and treated as previously described in 

 field culture up to the time of lifting the plants, when 

 they are taken up and planted singly in pots, -4-.^-, 



^"^ ~ 370. Laye 

 The parent stem 



6-, or 7-inch sizes, suiting th( 

 If the heading-back was noi 

 field, many pi 

 excellent spec 

 potted plants, h^ 



of Carnation, 

 yas severed at S. 

 n to the size of the plants, 

 continued too late in the 

 may oe in bud in October and be 

 s for fall sales. The bulk of the 

 >ver are intended for spring sales, 

 and are carried over the winter in well-built ?oldf rames, 

 left uncovered as long as fine weather will permit , 

 frosts and even light freezes ■ 

 At the approach of s 

 over the plants, but < 



not hurt the pla 



. J weather, sashes are covered 

 iiild days liberal ventilation is 



iven, and during extreme ■ 



cold additional ■ 



..■ing'is placed o"ver the frames. About the first of 

 Mar?h these plants are brought into a coolhouse, and_ 



one month later they are graced with a profusion of 

 buds and blossoms ; with proper care they will continue 

 to flower throughout the summer. The varieties pre- 

 ferred for pots are those of dwarf habit, with stems stiff 

 enough to hold up the flowers without staking^ In 

 color? the varieties known as " fancies " are usually more 

 salable than those with single colors. Vaneties 



the 

 Disbudding is 

 stiff stems, 

 moyed by insects 



or fungous diseases. The r^d spider is usually kept 



.ueu^ed for pot culture are Portia, Mrs. Fisher, Grace 

 Wilder, Buttercup, American Flag, Robert Lraig, 

 ^■o?H^' Carnations. -Aside from the forcing Carna- 

 tions, the following groups receive attention in this 



"°rn'™«/io» Malmaison. -This is a group of varieties 

 grownTn Europe. It is said ( Revue Horticole, 1888) that 

 the original variety of the group was taken from La Mal- 

 maison in the time of Napoleon I. It was pure white in 

 color but now all the shades of red are in the group. 

 The flowers are very large, even 6 inches in diameter 

 with good culture. The plants are dwarf, very flonfer- 



